flit / 971 r h 1 21 b Copy ig t, 9 , y ETER B KYNE P . 2 1 1 411 icr v ed includin tha t o tra nslation n hq , g f or - i n la n ua es includin intq f g g g g , g S candinavian . Pr inted in U. S . ! . D E D I C A T I O N TH IS LITTLE BOOK IS DEDICAT ED TO T HE MEMORY OF MY DE D CH I EF BRIG DI ER A , A GE ER EROY s . YO SOMETIME N AL L L N , COMMANDER OF T H E 65T H FI ELD AR TI ERY BRIG DE OT H D IVI SIO LL A , 4 N , U ITED ST TES RMY N A A . HE PRACTICED AND PREACH ED A RE LIGION OF LOYALTY T o T H E COU NTRY D THE PPOI TED T SK WT AN H A N A , A EVER IT M IGHT BE . T HE G O - G E T T E R L K k Co st A D N . no n a R . E P RIC S , w in Pacific wholesale lumb er and shipping circles as h ad Cappy Ricks, more troubles than a hen with ‘ m ke r e ar d c . ducklings . He as mu h to Mr Skinner, president and general manager o f the Ricks Lo g L r ging umbering Company, the corpo ate entity ’ which represented C ap p y s vast lumber interests ! and he fairly barked the information at Captain s o n- in- Matt Peasley, his law and also president and o f an manager the Blue Star Navigation Company, other corporate entity which represented the Ricks ri interest in the Ame can mercantile marine . - Mr . Skinner received this information in silence . not He was related to Cappy Ricks . But Matt e h P asley sat down , crossed his legs and matc ed - in- glares with his mercurial father law . “ ” Yo u ! s have troubles he jeered, with emphasi “ on the pronoun . Have you got a misery in your ' o r back, is Herbert Hoover the wrong man f o r ” Secretary o f Commerce ? 9 THE G O- GETTER ” o ur . y s a rcasm , young feller, Cappy “ ’ - shrilled . You kno w dad blamed well it isn t a ’ question of health o r politics . It s the fact that in my Old ag e I find mys elf totally surrounded by the choicest aggregation of mental duds since Aj ax ” defied the lightning . “ Meaning whom ? ” “ ” You and Skinner. “ ” Why, what have we done ? Y o u argued me into taking o n the management n freighters, and no soo er do we have them allo c ated to us than , a near panic hits the country, to i e n freight rates go glory, mar n e gineers go on strike and every infernal young whelp we send out to take charge o f one of o ur offices in the Orient ’ promptly gets the swelled head and thinks h e s divinely ordained to drink up all the synthetic Scotch whiskey manufactured in Japan for the ri benefit of thirsty Ame cans . In my old age you two have forced us into the position o f having to ? c e ’ fire folks by cable . Why Be aus we re break ’ ing into a game that can t be played o n the home r A lo t g ounds . of our business is so far away we ’ ” can t c o ntrol it. Matt Peasley leveled an accusing fing er at “ Cappy Ricks . We never argued you into taking over the management o f those Shipping Board THE GO- GETTER 1 1 ’ h Y t e . o u boats . We argued me into it . I m goat i r have nothing to do with it . You ret red ten yea s s ag o . All the troubles in the "marine end of thi ” shop belong on old settler . " "f “ l — u Th eof é tic alfi 7 e§ ACtually no . I hope yo " no t ex ect as do / p me to abandon mental as well f ' G ea ! physical e fort . r t Wampus Cats Am I to be denied a sentimental interest in matters where I have a controlling financial interest ? I admit you two boys are running my affairs and ordinarily n — — you ru them rather well , but but ahem ! ’ - h - h ! o Harumph What s the matter with y u, ? o u ? Matt And y , also, Skinner If Matt makes a ’ a ob him i o f r mist ke, it s your j to remind it befo e s ? the result manifest themselves, is it not And o u vice versa . Have y two boobs lost your ability l ? ” to juWdge men , or did you everWhave such abi ity r ” ffic e l dar e O . y say, Mr “ ’ I am , Skinner . And I m here to remind you that ’ to o ur . if we d stuck own game, which is coas twise - fi shipping, and had left the trans Paci c field with ’ r its general cargoes to othe s, we wouldn t have any Shanghai Office at this moment and we would not be pestered by the Hendersons of this world . “ ’ ’ ” e He s the best lumber, salesman we v ever had, r e . Mr . Skinne def nded had every hope that he THE G O- GETTER would send us orders for many a cargo for Asiatic ” delivery . “And he had gone through every job in this Of f fice, from o fice boy to sales manager in the lum ber department and from freight clerk to passen ” ger agent in the navigation company, Matt Peas ley supplemented . ul I admit all of that . But did you cons t me when you decided to send him out to China on his own ? ” “ ’ f Of cours e not . I m boss o the Blue Star Navi atio n no ? g Company, am I t The man was in charge of the Shanghai office before you ever opened your f ” mouth to dischar ge your cargo O free advice . “ ’ I told you then that Henderson wouldn t make ’ ? ” good, didn t I “Y o u did . “ And now I have an oppor tunity to tell you th e ’ little tale you didn t give me an opportunity to tell you before you sent him out . Henderson was — — a good man a crackerjack man when he had a — ’ better man over him . But I ve been twenty years reducing a tendency o n the part of that fel ’ ’ - low s head to bust his hat band . And now he s gone south with a hundred and thirty thousand ” taels o f o ur Shanghai bank account . “ ” Permit me to remind you, Mr . Ricks, Mr. Skin THE G O- GETTER 1 3 “ ner cut in coldly, that he was bonded to the extent ” of a quarter o f a million dollars . “ f n . ut . Not a peep o o you, Skin er Not a peep ’ Permit me to remind you that I m the little genius who placed that insurance unknown to yo u and Matt . And I recall now that I was reminded by r you, Matthew, my son, that I had retired ten yea s ul in ago and please, wo d I quit interfering in the f ” ternal administration Of your O fice . “ o - es Well, I must admit y ur far sightedn s in that instance will keep the Shanghai o ffiée out o f ” “ the red ink this year, Matt Peasley replied . How ever, we face this situation, Cappy . Henderson has drunk and gambled and signed chits in excess ’ of his salary . He hasn t attended to business and he’ s capped his inefficiency by absconding with our ’ b ank ac c o unt . We couldn t foresee that . When x we send a man o ut to the Orient to be o ur manager there, we have to trust him all the way o r not at . S o all there is no use weeping over spilled milk, Cappy . Our j ob is to select a successor to Hen der s o n and send him out to Shanghai o n the next ” boat . “ ” ~ Oh, very well, Matt, Cappy replied magnani “ ’ mo usl u ’ y, I ll not rub it into yo . I suppose I m far u from generous, bawling yo out like this . Perhaps, when you’ re my age and have had a lot of mental and moral cripples nip yo u and draw blood as o ften 1 4 THE G O- GETTER as they’ ve drawn it on me you’ll be a better judge than I of men worthy o f the weight of r es p o nsibil t . r a o ity Skinne , h ve you g a candidate for this ” j ob ? “ ir h A f I regret to say s , I ave not . ll o the men , — in my department are quite young too young for ” the responsibility . “ — ? ” What do you mean young Cappy blazed . Well the only man I would consider fo r the , — j o b is Andres and he is to o young about thirty, ” I should sa y . “ r ? o u About thi ty, eh Strikes me y were about twenty - eight when I threw ten thousand a year e f at you in actual cash , and a coupl o million dol ’ ” r la s worth o f responsibility .